The United States Department of Defense uses the 960-1215 MHz frequency band for the Joint Tactical Information Distribution System (JTIDS), and its successor multifunctional information distribution system (MIDS), as well as other functionally similar tactical data link systems. The term “Link 16” is commonly used to refer to these tactical data link systems (as well as these acronyms). Link 16 is employed in frontline land, air and naval equipment in the United States, as well as by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and allied nations.
Link 16 is based upon time division multiple access (TDMA) technology and static time slot assignments. Link 16 terminals include wireless terminals such as the MIDS joint tactical radio system (JTRS) or MIDS low volume terminal (LVT). MIDS JTRS are wireless terminals employing software defined radio (SDR), which have jamming resistance capabilities and provide secure real-time information and situation awareness by way of digital and voice communications for various United States and allied military platforms (e.g., Jet fighters such as the F/A-18, F-15 or F-16, early warning aircraft such as the E2, bomber aircraft such as the B1, as well as shipboard and land based missile launchers). MIDS-LVT is the predecessor to MIDS JTRS which offered less functionality and fewer channels for JTRS waveforms.
It recently has been shown that the Link 16 waveform is vulnerable to jamming, such as by networks of high powered enemy jamming resources which can be deployed in such a way as to saturate the Link 16 terminal's band of operation—effectively degrading the terminal performance or rendering it completely inoperable. Hence, there is a critical need for detection of such hostile jamming resources as well as the identification of the geographic location (“geo-location”) of an each jamming station in the enemy's network. Geo-location of hostile jammers would permit frontline military personal the option of either avoiding or neutralizing the jamming stations.